The Department of Computer Science is pleased to be part of two grants awarded though SUNY's Empire Innovation Program (EIP) to the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences totaling $4.5 million. The grant funding will be used to recruit and retain world-class faculty and researchers who will strengthen Stony Brook’s research productivity in two high economic opportunity areas of state and national significance — artificial intelligence (AI) and cybersecurity. The EIP funding will accelerate the development of the emergent Institute for AI-Driven Discovery & Innovation on campus which is a joint-effort between CEAS and Stony Brook University School of Medicine, as faculty in these two high-tech areas encompass experts in medicine and engineering.

This funding increases the Department of Computer Science's prominence in the areas of AI and cybersecurity. In AI, Stony Brook will focus on applications in medicine, smart environments and infrastructures, as well as core AI and machine-learning technologies. In cybersecurity, working with Stony Brook's National Security Institute, researchers will focus on all areas of security including hardware, operating systems, big data, and mobile.

“Stony Brook has consistently played a nationally prominent role in AI and cybersecurity research,” said Samuel L. Stanley Jr., President of Stony Brook University. “We have recently undertaken a bold, strategic initiative in engineering-driven medicine for which AI technology and cybersecurity of medical data are significant drivers. This grant will enable us to recruit leading faculty researchers, and invest added resources with our current researchers as they together pursue excellence in advancing these fields.”

The envisioned Institute will serve as a hub for all AI related research on campus and position Stony Brook as a leader in AI research. In addition to carrying out funded research, the Institute will catalyze new educational programs generating professionals for the AI-driven economy of the future. This will range from core technical programs (e.g., interdisciplinary data science and engineering or machine learning) to science communication, technology policy and entrepreneurship programs. The Institute will also stimulate regional economy by providing local industry and entrepreneurs with new technology training while meeting their workforce demands.

Space for the new AI and cybersecurity faculty will be allocated in the New Computer Science building which opened in 2015 as well as the newly built Medicine and Research Translation (MART) building. Contingent upon AI cluster hiring needs, additional space will be available in existing centers, including the Center of Excellence in Wireless & Information Technology (CEWIT), the Institute for Advanced Computational Science (IACS) and I-DIME, the new facility focused on discovery and innovation in medicine and engineering to be located in the Stony Brook University Research and Development Park.